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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24883957">Those moments which murdered my soul and turned my dreams to dust</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsphyxiousThesis/pseuds/AsphyxiousThesis'>AsphyxiousThesis</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Black Clover - Tabata Yuki (Anime &amp; Manga)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Captivity, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Human Trafficking, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture, Kidnapping, Langris Being A Good Brother, Non-Graphic Violence, Past Torture, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Team, Secrets, Spade Kingdom (Black Clover), Tags Contain Spoilers, Team as Family, Trauma</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 00:28:58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,167</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24883957</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsphyxiousThesis/pseuds/AsphyxiousThesis</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Six months ago, Finral was taken, right under their noses. When he comes back, nobody knows what happened to him. And that's the thing that's the hardest to deal with. Because even though Finral is trying to act like he's okay, those six months did things to him. Things that he so rarely hints at. So when demons from those six months come rearing, no one is prepared for anything.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Black Bulls Ensemble &amp; Finral Roulacase, Finral Roulacase &amp; Langris Vaude, Klaus Lunette &amp; Finral Roulacase, Vanessa Enoteca &amp; Finral Roulacase</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>159</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Beginning</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>takes place before the Heart Kingdom stuff. Actually, just pretend that all of that Heart Kingdom stuff never happened yet. This is after the Elf stuff with the Eye of the Midnight Sun or whatever. So this fic is canon compliant until <em>after</em> the end of the elf stuff<br/>.<br/>.</p><p>Although this fic will have concepts which are triggering, most of them will <em>not</em> be graphic to ensure that most of you guys can enjoy this fic. Triggers for future chapters include: human trafficking, Implied Torture (this might be written semi-graphically in some parts), descriptions of injury. Tags may change as the fic goes on. </p><p>IMPORTANT: Everything that happened to Finral happened in the past, you could say. The present is Finral's recovery and how the Black Bull's and others will help him out. You'll get it in time. In summary: this fic takes place <em>after</em> Finral's kidnapping</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Hey, Finral! Do you think this’ll look nice on me, hmm?” Vanessa holds a very. . .</span>
  <em>
    <span>unique</span>
  </em>
  <span> pink thing in front of her. Is it supposed to be some sort of tunic? Or maybe a dress? Pants? He can’t really tell because the thing looks like a bunch of multi-colored strings joined randomly together at different points. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral blushes, mouth contorting to form a word before switching to another. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’ll, ah. . .look unique.” He manages, wrapping his arms around his midsection, shivering in the cold of the outdoor market. He regrets having left his Black Bull cloak at base, just like everyone else. They didn’t need to draw attention by screaming that they’re magic knights. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean by that?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“There’s a lot of thread.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“. . .Honestly, I’m sorry, Vanessa. I don’t really know how I feel about it.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That draws a snicker from the pink-haired woman’s mouth, and she grins, putting the monstrosity back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know it looks horrid. I was trying to loosen you up a bit!” She moves in front of him and places her hands on his shoulders, pressing them a few times. “Have a bit of fun. You don’t know when the next time will be when you don’t have to hear the shrimpy’s screams.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Cue Asta screaming alongside Magna and Luck as they awe over a magical item a few stalls down. Vanessa’s hands fall from his shoulders and the two of them watch as Yami stalks over to the three unaware knights, Gauche, Grey, and Gordon following close behind him. The two don’t hear what he says but he lifts Magna and Asta by the head, the two of them kicking, while Luck laughs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He loves this team. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then Yami turns to the two of them and Finral wonders if their captain uses his dark magic in his glare. Or if that look is created out of dark magic. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“OI. YOU TWO” he calls over the crowd. “IT’S LUNCH TIME. COME ON.” Finral and Vanessa quickly jog over and then Finral quickly remembers something.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, Vanessa!” He exclaims. “I’m going to be a bit late. Langris’s birthday is the day after tomorrow and he’s been so good to me lately and our relationship has been pretty good. He even sent me a letter! So being a good brother I think I sho-mdkndoniphdsg!” His voice turns muffled when Vanessa slaps a gloves hand over his mouth, smiling at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Stop rambling,” she says. “Don’t worry. I’ll tell Yami. We’re getting food from the kebab stand that Asta almost stole food from, remember that place?” Finral nods and she nods back, dropping her hand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s not far from here” he says. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes! I already know what to get!” Vanessa cocks her head, cupping her chin. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh really? What is it?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s from that stall we passed by, like, an hour ago. You pointed it out to me. It’s that sapphire imbed in silver with a silver chain? Made in the Spade Kingdom?” His eyes are wide and the pinkette can already see how eager the younger is about this present.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You think your brother would like that?” Finral eagerly nods. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course! For being in the golden dawn he really likes the cooler coolers. In his mind, he probably calms it the “Silver Dusk”.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Vanessa raises an eyebrow. “That’s not even funny.” She waves at him, turning around and looking at him from over her shoulder. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“See you in fifteen!” She says. “Don’t be late- Yami might need to take a dump or something.” Finral gives her a thumbs up and Asta is suddenly there, pulling at Vanessa’s hand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“MISS VANESSA!” He shouts “WE NEED TO GO BEFORE THERE’S A LINE!” And then he sees Finral. “GAH! FINRAL! WHERE ARE YOU GOING!?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be back in fifteen!” Finral calls back before falling through a portal. Vanessa joins Asta and the group and they make their way to the kebab stand, ordering, getting their food relatively quickly, then finding a large table to sit at, Vanessa occasionally standing up to look for Finral. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At some point, even Yami notices her behavior. “Hey. Why don’tcha sit down and eat? And where’s the ride?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Vanessa frowns at this. “He said he’d be back in fifteen minutes and he knows where we are. But it’s been twenty minutes, at least.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gauche snorts. “He’s probably flirting with some girl.” Vanessa thinks about it. Yes, Finral is responsible, but he can have fun. And he’s not </span>
  <em>
    <span>that </span>
  </em>
  <span>late. She sits back down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Twenty minutes becomes thirty. They’re moving onto seconds. Thirty becomes forty which becomes an hour. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral still isn’t here. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>By now, all of them are getting a bit nervous and anxious. She notices Magna’s not-too-subtle looks around the area. Noelle fidgets. Yami focuses on different areas of the area at a time. All of them, even Gauche, are trying to find the tell-tale green that Finral is wearing. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>An hour becomes an hour and a half and they split up to look. Hours pass by. Stalls and shops are being closed and locked to be restocked for late evening when most people come back from working. The smell of food cooking wafts out of bakeries and restaurants and bars as they get ready for the night crowd, especially since it’s the start of the Three Clover Weekend.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral still hasn’t returned. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They have to buy brooms to go back to base. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral still hasn’t returned. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They have dinner. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral still hasn’t returned. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They go to sleep. They wake up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral still hasn’t returned. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the morning, they search the whole hideout from top to bottom before splitting up again, Charmy staying behind with Henry. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral is gone. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Take</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Gauche and Noelle travel to the Northern mountains, and intermediate location between the Forest of Witches and the Spade Kingdom. There, they find something. . .</p><p>More like some<em>one</em></p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>
    <span>Six months later. . .</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dinner is filled with chatter. Jokes are made and food is passed around. More than once during the night, someone’s gaze would be drawn to the empty portion of the couch next to Vanessa. Evernight without fail, there would be a plate, cutlery, and a cup there. The plate would be filled with food because, unlike the rest of the Magic Knights, the Black Bull’s hope and faith and love for one another will never die. And that plate is a statement as to how stubborn they are. Even if it takes years (they hope not), they </span>
  <em>
    <span>will </span>
  </em>
  <span>get their own back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Right now, Gauche is the one looking at it. Marie’s photo is safely tucked in his pocket. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral Roulacase. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A little over six months ago, the man who he willingly admitted to be his friend disappeared from the face of the kingdom. Two days later, Yami had marched to the Wizard King’s office and demanded aid in the search for their missing teammate. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Word spread fast. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A group from the Golden Dawn who were already close to the Black Bulls became even closer as they were the only ones who still helped with the search (plus someone else). This group was composed of Yuno, Klaus, and Mimosa. According to Klaus, he and Finral met at least two Saturday’s a month for tea at this one cafe. Mimosa enjoyed his company and had met him a few times as a child. Yuno was helping because of Asta. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The other person who didn’t exactly work with them and the Black Bulls was actually a surprising addition. Langris Vaude. Sure, most of the squad was angry at him when he popped up the day after his birthday and it was his brother’s absence from visiting that made him suspicious (and worried. Gauche has looked in a mirror enough times to read emotions off his usually emotionless face). </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but he couldn’t help it one night when he came down to the kitchen for water. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Vanessa” Langris had said while Gauche watched from behind the corner. The offensive spacial mage was sitting on the couch next to Vanessa, slumped over with his hands in his lap. “Can you tell me how exactly my brother went missing? Your whole group was there. How did he get out of your sighs?” There was a few moments of silence. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“We had gone to one of the shopping districts. We were about to go for lunch but Finral. . .he wanted to go and get your birthday present.” Langris let out a choked noise. “He agreed to meet us where we were going to have lunch in fifteen minutes, since he already saw what he wanted to get you. But he never arrived and then we searched and never found him.” And then Langris had stood up, wiping at his eyes. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thank you. I will take my leave again.” And then it had hit Gauche that Langris had come to the Black Bulls’ hideout again just to ask that question. And that for some reason, Vanessa had been downstairs and awake, with not a single drop of alcohol in sight. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He went back to his room after he heard Vaness start to cry. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But even six months later, even for the Black Bulls, things were getting ridiculous. Why couldn’t they find him? Where could he be? Who took him!? The Wizard King had contacted the Heart Kingdom’s queen. Finral wasn’t there. Asta had gone with Fana to the Diamond Kingdom border where they were escorted by a guy named Mars into the kingdom to search. Finral wasn’t there either. And then there was no way that he could be in the Spade kingdom since both an extensive force of Magic Knights guarded that area of the border and the Forest of Witches had reported that no one had entered the forest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gauche was at his wits end now. He’s been so busy as of lately, so off with the anxiety that everyone was feeling with Finral not being here, that he hadn’t asked to visit Marie one in the past three days! </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Gauche,” he looks up and sees Noelle, the girl looking calm and collected at first glance. Her eyes tell him that she’s nervous “I’m leaving to go check out the mountains in our border with the Spade Kingdom. Can you come with me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why not someone else? That little demon Luck would be excited.” He internally smirks when he sees the royal nearly pout. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“He went with Grey, Nero, and Gordon to some place in the west. And Asta is with Magna and Zara, exploring a small new dungeon to see if there’s anything that could help. Captain Yami went with Vanessa to the Witches’ Forest again. That leaves only you and me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Charmy.” Gauche says.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“She needs to stay with Henry.” Gauche stays silent for a few moments before sighing and closing the book he didn’t even know he had in his lap. He gets up, feeling the weight of his Grimoire against his thigh. He doesn’t think anyone has really checked the mountains yet. But the ones to the north are so cold, it’s almost like the Spade Kingdom’s terrain: almost always snowing, be it light or heavy, but snow, sleet, and ice is always there. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It takes them a few hours to get to the north. They took some money in case they needed to stay the night anywhere and they already put a note on the table saying that they may not be back until tomorrow and why. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It’s already getting dark, the sun almost invisible behind the angle that the mountains are placed in this area. Gauche wouldn’t be lying if he said that he had thought of “what-ifs” pertaining to whether there’s a force of Spade soldiers guarding their border a few dozen kilometers from the other side of the mountains. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We can probably get a few hours in” Gauche huffs, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his jacket. Noelle digs in a pocket and pulls out a magic item, tapping on it. Almost immediately, it starts glowing, lighting up the area around them with a soft yellow glow.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes” Noelle agrees. Then they get back on their brooms, scouting the face of the mountain. They’re lucky that it’s only very lightly snowing. After half an hour, they finally see something close to the peak, the two of them getting off their brooms to get a closer look. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are those footprints?” Noelle asks. Gauche bends down. And then he turns his gaze to the decline of the mountain’s slope. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“They’re fresh,” he says. “See how only some of them are clear and the others look more like just a block of no snow? That’s where they dragged their feet. It didn’t snow much, and it hadn’t been when we came. They’re probably either still on the mountain or on the ground.” He eyes the trail again. “And on the Clover side.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Noelle quietly mutters something, swinging back onto her broom. “They might know something. I’m going after them.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait.” Gauche says, mounting his own broom. “Now.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They have to slow down and even stop quite a few times. At multiple points, it looks as if whoever had been climbing down the mountain had collapsed and there would be a larger, deeper section of snow or an incomplete outline of a person. At one point, it looked like they had rolled and had struggled quite a bit with stopping. The person had made it all the way down the mountain and into the forest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sun has long since set, the only light being the crescent moon and Noelle’s magic item. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Be careful” Gauche whispers, getting off the broom now that they’re in the enclosed area of forest. “The prints are fresh.” Noelle nods and whips her wand out. “Also, turn the light off.” Noelle nods and taps the item before pocketing it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The snow glistens where the moonlight leaks past thin, bare branches. Snow lightly falls around them and they pull up the hoods of their Black Bulls coats to help keep it from falling onto their faces. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The footprints are strange. They’re erratic, as if the person couldn’t quite gather what direction they wanted to go. The path was anything but straight but it led in the relative direction away from the mountains. A runaway from the Spade Kingdom?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Noelle taps Gauche’s arm. He stops to look at her. She points forward then taps her ear and then points forward again. Gauche stops breathing and listens. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He hears it. The crunching of snow. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The two of them continue and footsteps are turning more into dragging. “Who do you think they are?” Noelle asks. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Runaway prisoner from the Spade Kingdom” Gauche says. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We should pursue them, right? They might have been someone from the Heart, Diamond, or Clover Kingdom.” Gauche really doesn’t want to- waste of time- but he nods. Might as well do some good. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They continue following the trail. The crunching becomes louder and they step in the pre-made footprints to reduce the noise made. They catch the edge of a silhouette in the shadow of a tree, shoulder catching on a tree. They stumble back a bit before moving a little to the right and continuing, their shoulder almost brushing against the tree again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The person looks to be somewhere between Gauche and Noelle’s height, leather boots crunching in the snow. They wear a dark colored coat with white fur on the mantel, the cloth gently swaying in the cold wind. On the back, where the fur trails down the back a bit, is the symbol of the Spade Kingdom. Long, light brown hair and a flash of something black. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“HEY!” Gauche shouts because there’s no way this can be a prisoner. Those clothes, from what little they found out about the Spade Kingdom through Mars in the Diamond Kingdom, is that those are that of the upper echelon of their military. “What do you think you’re doing in the Clover Kingdom?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The person stops. They stop and then they turn around, staring straight at Noelle and Gauche. He shivers, blaming the action on the cold. Those eyes look dead. They’re shadowed by his hair, body flecked with snow, hair almost coated with it. A metal thing covers the bottom half of his face, covering his nose and chin and mouth, engraved with an elegant pattern of lines and a spade on the left side of the mask. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That gaze looks intimidating. Strangely intimidating and familiar. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They also wear a red leather tunic, covering their neck. Two black straps cross over his upper chest. Black pants are loose on their legs, stained with something darker. On their side hangs a grimoire. It’s green. Besides that, they’re positively covered in snow. Gauche was right in guessing that he probably rolled down part of the mountain. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The man sluggishly blinks at him, not meeting his eyes and instead keeping his gaze focused on his chin. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re a soldier of Spade.” Gauche states. The man’s hands are limp at his side and they must be freezing at this point! The left hand, though, is tightly curled into a fist, cuts and bruises visible on that hand, unlike the other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Strange.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But what’s even stranger is his reaction to the question, he takes a step towards Gauche. One step. Two steps. Three steps. Four steps. Five steps. Six steps. He stands in front of Gauche, something strange in the man’s eyes. Now that they’re close, Gauche can properly make out his eye color. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Purple. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then the guy collapses on him, Gauche just barely able to catch him and Noelle squawking. Gauche struggles to get an arm under him before picking him up princess style, the soft fur mantel brushing against his neck. Noelle comes closer to Gauche, tilting her head in curiosity to examine their Spade runaway. Or spy. . .</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But he couldn’t be. Because Gauche has a suspicion. And he </span>
  <em>
    <span>knows </span>
  </em>
  <span>it’s not these six months that have made him see him in this guy. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“He’s bleeding.” Noelle says. The dark spot on his leg is growing, slowly but surely. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We can take him to that what’s-his-face Yami always talks ‘bout” Gauche says. “That Owen guy.” They turn around and quickly walk back to where they left their brooms. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Gauche” Noelle tentatively says. “Do you. . .He looks like Finral.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We can’t be su-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“His hair.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gauche pauses and Noelle turns to him and goes to their captive’s long, snow flecked hair. She raises a lock, looking at Gauche. It’s not there in the rest of the hair, but it seems like whoever did his hair months ago missed a spot. And nobody noticed in all this time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A section of green. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>They’re quick to get on their brooms after this. Gauche holds Finral so carefully and delicately and Noelle, for once, has perfect control of her broom. Her hands shake and she can’t help but stare.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It might not be Finral. All that they’re going off of is his hair and his eyes. She doesn’t know why there’s that thing on his face. She doesn’t know why he’s bleeding. She doesn’t know why he looks thinner. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She doesn’t know why she’s dressed in the uniform of what’s probably the Spade version of the Royal Knights. What happened to him, if this really is him (please let it be him, please please </span>
  <em>
    <span>please</span>
  </em>
  <span>). . .she doesn’t know how he’ll be like once he wakes up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gauche has wrapped the Spade-person in their own coat, like a blanket. His head rests against Gauche’s chest. Noelle pulls out her communicator, one that connects to Mushroom he- Marx. That was his name. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Moments later, the other end picks up and a holographic version of the Wizard King’s right-hand man appears. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Miss Silva” Marx says. “What do you need?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I need you to get a spacial mage to open a portal in. . .” she trails off, trying to remember the village that they would have stayed in for the night. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dunden” Gauche says. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dunden” Noelle replies “We’ll be there in about five minutes.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If I may, can I ask why you need an emergency portal?” She looks at Marx and she knows he won’t judge. He’s a very nice person. He cares for all who he’s nicely acquainted with, which includes the entirety of the Black Bulls, thanks to Yami. They can trust him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We found a runaway from the Spade Kingdom” Noelle says. “He wears the uniform of an accomplished soldier. He’s also injured, passed out, and” she swallows “Greatly resembles Finral.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On the other end, Marx’s eyes widened considerably. He nods. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright. There will be a portal opened within the minute. It’ll lead to Doctor Owen’s office. I trust your judgement, Noelle. But there is the possibility that he-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Isn’t Finral” she sullenly says. “Yeah.” He bows his head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Goodbye, then. I’ll contact Captain Yami.” And the line closes. She pockets the device. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They fly in silence and, true to Marx’ words, they see the signature gated portal of that one Golden Dawn spatial mage. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They quickly get off their brooms. Noelle smiles when she sees that Gauche is nearly running to get through the portal. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She really hopes (and doesn’t) that this really is Finral. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is the Spade guy?” Gauche lowers the body on the bed and Noelle stands close to him. Owen is quick to gather his magic and open his grimoire. The jellyfish-like magic structure gathers around the Spade soldier.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hurry up” Gauche huffs. “We have to know what’s up.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m healing what I can,” Owen retorts. “There’s heavy bruising on his back and knees. Severe hypothermia. Low nutrients. The blood seems to be from a cut on his torso that reopened. This hand” he taps his left hand, the one bruised and cut and still clenched. “Nothing up with it except for the bruising and the cut but it seems that it became a bodily reflex to keep that hand shut. There’s chafing around the neck and wrists too.” He sighs, taking off his glasses to clean them while his magic does it’s work. “Everyone knows how harsh the Spade Kingdom is, but </span>
  <em>
    <span>this </span>
  </em>
  <span>much?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Can you take off the mask?” Noelle asks. Owen shakes his head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll need to get a spellbreaker. It’s faint, but you can feel a binding spell on it. If you look here” he taps on a deeper engraving at the front “It’s actually a hole. Probably for ventilation purposes and just big enough to fit a straw through. Probably how he drank and ate. It’s also pretty tight so there might be some lingering indents and red that’ll fade in a few days.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Asta!” Gauche and Noelle say at the same time. “We can have him take the spell off!” Noelle urges. “We need to help Fi-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t know if it’s him.” Owen sighs. “You want it to be him. I want it to be him. Heck, </span>
  <em>
    <span>everyone </span>
  </em>
  <span>wants it to be him! But this guy, right here- he’s a soldier for the kingdom of Spade. I’ve heard of rumours that the Spade Kingdom has been kidnapping people with non-traditional forms of magic and integrating them into their kingdom. He might physically look like Finral, yes, but it could be someone who can change their look. Or if it is Finral, we don’t know what happened to him in six months.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There’s a few minutes of silence after that. Noelle’s happy that Gauche doesn’t speak up because she </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>needs this time to think. The Spade soldier is surrounded by the water healing magic, face pale. The coat is a bit wide on him at the shoulders.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think I’ll be calling Asta” Owen speaks up. “I’ll call someone within the hour.” He rubs the bridge of his nose. “Please don’t tell anyone who you think he is. It’ll cause too much trouble before we know the truth. Now, you two should leave. He should be fine by tomorrow. I’ll contact you two privately or your squad if your assumptions are correct. It’s almost midnight and you should rest. Now” he points to the door. “Shoo.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The two of them reluctantly leave. Noelle takes one last look behind her before closing the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen, meanwhile, looks down at the Spade soldier. He opens up his communicator and tells Marx to send a spellbreaker before putting it back on his desk. Then he goes to the man who even with the mask on looks so young and innocent despite what thoughts Owen has as to what might have happened to him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he thinks of Finral Roulacase, he remembers a boy more on the pretty side rather than handsome. He remembers nervous blushes as he takes his captain to-and-from the place. He remembers watching the boy when he’d sometimes stay, failing to flirt with any girl he came across. He remembers wise and hilarious jokes and intelligent observations. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He brushes aside his hair and his breath catches when he sees small dark jade earrings. He sits down on the wooden chair next to the bed, burying his face in his hands after taking his glasses off.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>He stays up all night, watching. He got a pot of coffee so he should be good! Own cleans his glasses for the thirtieth time that night. Although, it’s not even night anymore but more like dawn. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It all pays off when he sees purple eyes start to open. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey,” Owen says, rushing over. He didn’t want to take the mask off for him. The spell has taken off and a clasp has appeared on the strap, enabling the removal of the mask. “It’s good to see you're awake.” The guy struggles to sit up, left hand staying in a fist. “You’re in the Clover Kingdom, not in the Spade Kingdom anymore. You remember me, right? Doctor Owen?” Purple eyes widen and then there’s a nod and then he’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>lunging </span>
  </em>
  <span>at Own, hand scrabbling to find purchase on the front of his shirt, pulling him close to him by the lapels of his coat so that he could bury his face in his chest, shoulders trembling with sobs under that dark coat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But he doesn’t make a sound. He shakes and he can feel something wet gathering on his shirt, but he doesn’t hear the sounds that always come with crying. Only the occasional sniff of the nose to keep snot in.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Owen is a pretty physically affectionate person so he doesn’t really hesitate to wrap his arms around the other guy’s body. He gently pats his head, reminiscing of when he was little and taking care of his little sister, or when he was still a small-time doctor who would comfort children when they were so sick that it hurt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The spell on the mask was removed,” Owen says. “You can take it off.” The hand leaves his body and purple eyes, so wide and filled with disbelief but also </span>
  <em>
    <span>hope</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Long locks of hair fall over his face but he ignores them, a trembling hand reaching up, experimentally tugging before moving back on the strap undoing the clasp. The mask falls into his lap and the hand flies over his face, tracing the red and almost purple in parts of the line that runs over his nose and cheeks. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Those probably hurt, don’t they?” Owen tutts. “Here” his magic comes out again and it’s quick to heal the bruises. They don’t fade completely but now the only thing there is the red marks of where the lining was. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He looks incredulous. As if what just happened isn’t true. Owen lets himself take a moment to examine his face. No other cuts or bruises. No scarring. No blemishes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know your name already” Owen says, “but can you say your name?” The face looks so happy, mouth twitching into a small smile.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The trouble starts when his mouth opens.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“F-f-f” he stutters. He closes his eyes. “Finral.” His voice is rough with disuse, like he just recovered from a throat illness. He wraps his arms around his midsection. He looks up at Owen, eyes not meeting his, but they do focus on a part of his face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I have a few questions,” Owen says. “Don’t worry, they’re nothing bad. You don’t need to speak. Just nod or shake your head. Ready?” Finral nods. “Do you remember everything that happened to you in Spade.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nod. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you remember your teammates from the Black Bulles?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nod. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Family?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nod.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you remember what you did in Spade and how you got taken?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nod.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nod the number of months you think you were gone.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A brief moment of hesitation and then three.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Six months, Finral.” He says. Finral slowly pulls his lower lip in, biting it. He bows his head and his right hand also clenches. “You don’t need to feel guilty about anything. We’ve been searching for you and it was Gauche and Noelle who found you. Speaking about them, do you want to see your team?” Finral’s head snaps up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes!” He says, standing up with a start, probably trying to shout but it ended up being just a bit quieter than normal volume. He winces and rubs his throat, sitting back down. He puts his hands in his coat pockets and draws the cloth around him, lower half of his face snuggling into the fur mantle. He draws his legs up, taking his hands out of his pockets so that he can wrap his arms around his legs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen fondly smiles. He admits he has a weakness for Yami’s team. He started working with Julius when he just finished studying medicine. He was there when a Yami that must have been no older than twelve was dragged to his office with a common Clover cold which he had basically no immunity against. He’s seen each of the Black Bulls at least once when they were seriously injured. Charmy is adorable. Vanessa is amiable and a good drinking buddy. Grey is shy but they get along. He can understand Gordon. He and Gauche boast about little siblings. He’s dropped by before to see Henry. Asta is a ray of sunshine. He knew Noelle before she joined the Black Bulls. Magna and Luck are probably his most common patients. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You probably want something to eat,” Owen says. “Your nutrients levels are low and you can’t eat solids yet. Any gooey preference?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“. . .pudding?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen lets out a laugh. He doesn’t miss the blush on Finral’s face. He </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>missed the guy. Sure, his disappearance didn’t affect him as much as the Black Bulls, but he can also kind of grieve. It’s strange, seeing Finral now. It’s surreal, dressed in the clothes of the Spade Kingdom, neatly styled light brown hair now long and unruly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be back in around half an hour” he goes to his desk and grabs his communicator and a hairbrush, tossing them onto the empty area next to Finral on the bed. “If you need anything, call someone. I’ll get you pudding, soup, and a nutrients drink. It’s still so early so I’ll call your squad at about eight?” Finral nods, one hand grabbing the hairbrush and moving so that his back faces the door. Owen leaves when he sees Finral start running the brush through his hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Owen should have known that something would have happened. That’s just his luck! Happens every. Single. Time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’s at the kitchens, taking pudding out of the enchanted cabinet which keeps the inside of the cabinet cold. The cooks aren’t up yet so he has to get the broth and heat it up, adding in seasoning and cream and pastes. The milk is also already poured, protein powder put into it before he stirs in melted chocolate and an extra spoon of sugar.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He finds a tray and loads it up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Doctor Owen! I didn’t know you’d be up. See Yuno: we don’t wake up the earlie- woah. Are you okay?” Own turns around wryly smiling as he meets the concerned eyes of one Mimosa Vermillion. Behind her is Yuno and Klaus, as usual. Owen is aware of how he probably looks: sunken eyes and shadows, hair more unruly than usual and wrinkles in his clothes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m fine. I got a patient last night so I stayed up to be there when he woke up.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re tired, though! Here, I’ll take the tray. You’ll probably tip over and fall down the stairs!” Owen doesn’t have time to protest as Mimosa takes the tray. Yuno looks impassive as usual but there is a glimpse of concern in his eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Next subject: Klaus Lunettes. Besides the Black Bulls, he was probably one of the closest people to Finral. He heard the rumours and then from Klaus himself around two months after the disappearance (kidnapping, Owen now thinks). They were tea buddies, meeting up at the same place for almost a year now. Always on a Saturday. They would write to each other. They would pass glances. Act serious suring joint missions pretending not to know each other. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was cute. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And now that he thinks about it, as the four of them start up the stairs, they have no idea that it’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>Finral Roulacase </span>
  </em>
  <span>who he stayed up all night for. And only Gauche and Noelle had their suspicions about the Spade runaway being their friend, their teammate, and they wouldn’t be the first to find out for sure that he’s back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Life works in strange ways. He wonders, vaguely, if Julius has anything to do with this. . .eh. Probably not, now that he’s a kid. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So who is this mystery patient?” Mimosa says, trying to start up conversation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Mimosa” Yuno simply says. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, it’s fine.” Owen says. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t need Yuno and myself” Klaus speaks up, still walking up the stairs, though. “Mimosa, Yuno and I will go back to the kitchens and get coffee re-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I have coffee!” Owen says, happy he didn’t drink all of it. “It’s an enchanted pot so it’s still warm at least. And to answer your question, Mimosa, they’re a runaway from the Spade Kingdom.” The three of them stop walking, looking at Owen incredulously.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Doctor Owen” Klaus says, eye twitching once. How is an eighteen year old so intimidating? “With all due respect, a runaway. From </span>
  <em>
    <span>Spade</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The Spade military” Owen adds as an afterthought. Even Yuno’s starting to form a strange look on his face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The Spade military” Klaus continues. “Are you sure he’s not a spy?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Absolutely. I know him, actually. A friend. Haven’t seen them in a while so we were going to get caught up.” They continue their walk, albeit a bit less enthusiastically on the trio’s end. “Can I ask you three not to freak out?” They walk down a hall, closer and closer to the private room he put Finral in. Yuno gives him a look out of the corner of his eye and Owen has to hold back the paranoia that he knows. “I already healed him physically but I don’t quite know the mental effects of living in Spade for how long that he did.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The three of them either nod or voice their agreement. Owen knocks twice on the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, let me take the tray!” Owen says, doubting that Mimosa would be able to hold on once she sees who it is. The one thing he’s going to enjoy about all of this is seeing everyone’s reaction when they see Finral. He pushes the door open, holding it open with his foot while the three file in. He can already see Yuno’s grimoire, slightly hidden by his cloak, start to glow. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Just like how he left him, Finral’s back is facing the doorway, the symbol of the Spade Kingdom on display, hairbrush still in hand, hair in a much better state than before. Behind him to the side is the communicator and the mask, side by side. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You have guests!” Owen says. “Don’t worry, you know them.” Finral pauses. Brush lowering.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“He knows us?” Klaus mumbles, pushing his glasses up but he freezes when Finral looks over his shoulder, pale skin flashing and a purple eye widening. </span>
  <em>
    <span>They probably don’t recognize him yet</span>
  </em>
  <span> he thinks. His hair has grown and the clothes and the red from the mask. But Finral had answered the questions truthfully before- he remembers everyone. So Owen expected something to happen but not quite this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral didn’t even fully turn around. Owen saw the excitement spread across his face and then he was. . .gone. Like, a portal quickly appeared on the bed, in the blink of an eye. And then another and it opens in front of Klaus and Finral is leaping out of it, arms outstretched. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Klaus!” He exclaims, mouth widening into a large, beaming smile, arms weaseling under Klaus’s and wrapping themselves around Klaus, hugging the noble, cheek nuzzling into the off-white front of Klaus’s Golden Dawn cloak. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mimosa gasps, covering her mouth with her hands to hold back a choked sob. Yuno’s eyes widen and Owen feels smug when he sees the shock and then happiness that grows on his face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral?” Klaus says, putting his hands on the shorter man’s shoulders, gently pulling him away just so that he could see his face. Owen’s face melts when he sees the childish awe on Klaus’s face but his heart breaks just a little when he sees that Finral doesn’t meet Klaus’s eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hi” Finral rasps before hugging Klaus again. Klaus wraps his arms around him, a smile growing on his face. And then he freezes. And pulls away. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“The Spade Kingdom. You were in the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Spade Kingdom</span>
  </em>
  <span>!?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Klaus, we can deal with that later!” Mimosa tutts, going and taking her turn to hug Finral, tightly hugging him but he’s all too happy to return it. His left hand still remains in a fist though.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s good to have you back,” Yuno says from the side. Finral smiles at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, he should eat now. This is all so happy and wholesome and heartwarming but I have to get his vitamins up.” He takes the tray to the bed, putting it down.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Have you called the Black Bulls yet?” Yuno says. “I am sure that Asta would like to see Finral again.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen nods. “After he eats.” Finral reluctantly pulls away from Mimosa, trudging back to his bed, not using a portal this time. But the memory still runs through Owen’s head. It was fast- </span>
  <em>
    <span>really fast</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He didn’t even use his grimoire or make any hand movements to open it. Owen mentally snorts when he sees Klaus hurry to join Finral, the joy and adoration obvious on his face. He sits down next to Finral and Mimosa hurries and takes his other side.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ll have coffee” Yuno tells Owen as he watches Finral ignore the soup to dig into the pudding, quickly shoveling the pudding into his mouth. Owen nods and pours the boy a cup, nodding at the sugar and cream. He smiles when he sees Yuno dump a lot of sugar into his cup. “Have you told vice-captain Langris yet?” Yuno says with a smirk. Owen’s eyes widen. Oh, he should do that. He hears Mimosa and Klaus laugh at some joke, Finral smiling, but then he sees something happen. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The man’s smile freezes on his face and it fades, like a field being overtaken by shadow, a blank look overcoming his face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The tray slips from his lap and almost falls onto the floor, only saved by quick thinking on Yuno’s part, wind making it fall upright without spilling. His hands rest on his knees, shoulders tense. His eyes are frozen, not really looking but left to gaze at the floor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral. . .?” Mimosa asks from his left, reaching a hand out and touching his balled left hand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Wrong choice. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A strange noise exits his throat and he clutches his hand to his chest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Roulacase, stay!” Owen barks out the command without a second thought, just able to tell that he’d try and open a portal. Finral stiffens and stands in a flash. The heels of his boots click on the ground, his back straightening. His left arm hangs taut at his side while the right hand comes up to his chest in the Ace Kingdom’s salute: four fingers, the thumb tucked into the palm, the hand resting on it’s side right diagonally across his heart, palm facing down. Three seconds and then his arm lowers to hang at his side, not looking at anything.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What the heck?” Yuno mutters but he looks freaked out. Finral doesn’t move, frozen in his spot. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Mister Lunettes. Miss Vermillion” Owen says. “Can you put some distance between yourselves and Finral?” He looks at the boy and the two back away from him. “Okay, lets try this. . .” his mutters, getting ready for defense. “Roulacase.” Finral looks up, meeting Owen’s eyes, and he can’t keep a quick tremor from running through his body. </span>
  <em>
    <span>He’s standing at attention. Orders. </span>
  </em>
  <span>“Roulacase, at ease.” Finral blinks and a look of horror draws across his face. He falls back onto the bed, covering his eyes with his hands, his left hand digging into his eye.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m so sorry,” he rasps. “I didn’t. . .” he trails off, unable to find the right words. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s okay,” Owen says. “Mimosa, Klaus, Yuno: can you three go to the communications office and tell the Black Bulls to come to my office at noon?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Can Klaus stay?” Finral says from the bed. Owen nods. A look of relief crosses Klaus’s face and he goes back to the bed, sitting down next to Finral while Mimosa and Yuno leave. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ah, wait!” He calls. “Mimosa, can you send Vice-Captain Vaude up here? And fill him in on the situation to the best of your ability beforehand.” He really doesn’t want to deal with an angry and exploding Langris. “Klaus, you’ll have to leave before he comes.” The blue haired mage nods. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course.” But he’s not looking at Owen while he does this, opting to wrap an arm around Finral, the elder curling into Klaus’s side. The colors of the Golden Dawn and the red and black of the Spade Kingdom. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen wonders how someone as pure as Finral had managed to survive. And then he remembers the wrist and neck chafing, the reopened cut, the bruises. He remembers Finral standing up at the mention of his mother’s maiden name. He wonders what’s hiding under the red leather and black pants. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he has the time, he’ll have to visit the House of Vaude and ask Ledior Vaude about his late first-wife. And any affiliations he may have with the Spade Kingdom.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So what's up with his left hand?. . . . . .</p><p>So, clearing a few things up:<br/>[1] Yes, Klaus and Finral are close. I'm following the headcanon that the two of them are tea buddies and I'm a shipper of RouLette (hehe). But if you put your shipping glasses on, this fic will probably be per-relationship or a  slow burn, depends on what I think in the future.<br/>[2] Owen is only really a main guy in the beginning. He'll fade away and that's when the real healing part will begin. Right now, Finral is still trying to deal with the fact that he's in the Clover Kingdom so his mind doesn't really have the time to properly feel the effects of things like kidnapping and torture. <br/>[3] I haven't read the manga but I'm up-to-date on the anime! So everything about the Spade Kingdom is going to be made-up but fundamentally based on everything that the Black Clover FanWiki has on the Spade Kingdom</p><p>Next chapter, we're going to get Langris! And also what's up with Finral's left hand. . .</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>. . .I didn't mean for this chapter to be so soft, actually. I just started writing Langris and decided to shove my headcanons onto him. So this is about 4000 words of Finral and Langris just kinda comforting each other. There are also hints as to what the plot will evolve to because believe or not, this story isn't just going to be plotless fluff and angst all the way through</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Langris Vaude honestly has no idea how much he has slept in the past few months. The number was close to zero in the beginning but with Captain Vangeance’s soft and gentle words, the significant smaller stack of paperwork, missions that are easy to complete and in the vicinity of some calming location. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He bounces his leg in the privacy of his office, rubbing at his eyes. The energy potion was starting to wear off a little, exhaustion creeping up on him. He was going over the reports that his spy- his </span>
  <em>
    <span>men</span>
  </em>
  <span>, the reports that his men sent him about the Black Bulls findings in different areas of the kingdom. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now, if you asked him six months ago, perhaps the day before he learned about all of this, he would have scoffed. Why would he become semi-acquainted with the Black Bulls? Why would he be so interested in these findings? And his brother! Why does he care about his worthless older brother?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Because he remembers, as an elf, his brother’s outstretched arm. How he pulled him back to himself, even though Langris had tried to kill him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Twice</span>
  </em>
  <span>. And he nearly succeeded the first time around. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As children, he did nothing but taunt him. Flaunt his superiority. But his brother would get him to relax once in a while, to know what it feels to be a kid. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he joined the Golden Dawn, his parent’s letter of congratulations was monotonous and written in handwriting completely different from theirs, the only thing written by them probably being the signature. Finral’s letter had spanned a few pages, telling him all he knows about the Golden Dawn, how to get on Captain Vangeance’s good side (discretely point out or notify him of what Captain Yami was doing or if he was nearby), the things that nobody teaches the newbies how to do, leaving them to learn and fend for themselves. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And he had been angry, on his birthday. Angry and sad. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>His parents had called him back home for a lunch party, all of their esteemed noble “friends” coming over. He had gathered a multitude of presents, ranging from more money than he could ever need, lavish clothing he would probably never wear, magic items and other things. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Throughout the whole thing, he had kept a fake smile on his face. As much as he tried to deny it, he couldn’t wait to go back to headquarters. And not because it’ll get him away from all of this fakeness, but Finral would probably be there. Like the year before. And the year before that. With some sort of thoughtful present, like a book about magic compatibilities or leather boots charmed to withstand all sorts of environments (which he always wears). </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>When he returned back to headquarters, he went straight to his room, first and foremost. Outside of his door was a small, carefully wrapped box with a card neatly placed on top with his name written in his captain’s careful and neat script.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He picked it up and put it in his room, planning on opening later. Allow the suspense to build up so he can feel excitement for once. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He also wonders what Finral got him. . .</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He waits an hour. Then another. And another. His brother never comes. He walks around the base’s layout twice in the span of an hour, his mood going downhill. Some wish him a happy birthday but he never responds.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Where is the brat?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He turns a corner and he sees Captain Vangeance and Captain Yami. His captain rarely takes his mask off, which is a new development since the Eye of the Midnight Sun. He usually only takes it off with people he’s close with, the most being with the captain of the Black Bulls and the Wizard King. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>For once, Captain Yami has a different expression on his face. He looks tired and worried. More haggard than usual. Vengeance has a hand on Yami’s arm, his helmet tucked under his under arm. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Langris is already stressing out enough. And over the little thing of his brother not being here. Maybe he can ask the Black Bulls Captain? He doesn’t really have room in his mind to care about subtlety. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Captain Yami,” Langris says, walking to the two. A stricken look flashes across Vangeance’s face. He can’t have him telling him to go somewhere else before he can ask his question. “May I ask if Finral Roulacase” the last name still feels weird on his tongue “is on a mission of sorts today?” </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Yami takes his cigarette out of his mouth, raising an eyebrow at Langris. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Ah. Right. You’re his brother, right? By the way, happy birthday , kid.” The eyebrow lowers. “That just sucks, learning about this and on your birthday too. Two days ago, Finral disappeared. There’s no sign of him anywhere</span>
  </em>
  <span>The most important safety precaution I followed was to make sure that when I exercise outside, it’s either during the evening or early morning. This is important because it gets really hot during the day so chances of getting heat exhaustion and dehydration are much much higher than they would be in any other month of the yea</span>
  <em>
    <span>.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He’s missing. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He remembered immediately storming off, more worry than faux anger. Of course, he had joined the Black Bulls in searching for Finral, who in turn also dragged in Klaus, Mimosa, and Yuno. He had forgotten to open Captain Vangeance’s present, and when he did, it revealed itself to be a light blues leather-bound journal. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was perfect for documenting the results of anywhere he searched, just so that he could feel like he was </span>
  <em>
    <span>doing something</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Langris had knocked on the Black Bulls hideout. It was the middle of the night and he had to wake Captain Vangeance up to tell him where it was. When he arrived at the place, he had been surprised to see that the pink-haired witch was the one who was awake. He couldn’t help but feel a bit relieved because she seemed to have been close to Finral.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She invited him to the couch. He sat right next to her, letting his posture fail from the weight of exhaustion. He’s always picked at the bonds between him and his brother but he still remembers the admiration he would feel when seeing his brother’s quickly formed, accurate portals. And even though the admiration has lessened, it doesn’t mean that it didn’t return after everything that happened with his possession. Nowadays, it was so easy. To just picture what condition his brother could be in and fall into a silent panic. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Can you. . .” he hesitates. “Can you tell me how exactly my brother went missing?” He heard Vanessa’s breath hitch. “Your whole group was there. How did he get out of your sights?” There were a few moments of tense silence and he was awaiting the response. A group of thugs held them back. Binding magic. Assassins. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“We had gone to one of the shopping districts” matching descriptions for the report so far. “We were about to go for lunch, but Finral. . .” same time for when they thought he went missing. “He wanted to go and get your birthday present.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Not matching report description. New information. New information that grabs at his throat and chokes him .</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“He agreed to meet us where we were going to have lunch in fifteen minutes, since he already saw what he wanted to get you.” And he had been angry. Angry at Finral that day for not coming to tell him Happy Birthday! Because he couldn’t. Because it had been because of </span>
  </em>
  <span>him </span>
  <em>
    <span>and a need for a present that sent Finral to his doom. It was his fault. He feels stinging warmth behind his eyes.  “But he never arrived and then we searched and never found him.” Before she could say any words of comfort, Langris got up, wiping at his eyes. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thank you” he can’t ignore the hoarseness of his voice. “I will take my leave now. Good night.” He rode his broom a few kilometers first, a good distance into the middle of nowhere forest. He lowered himself to the ground and then raised his gaze to the sky and let out a raw scream, a shout, a call for his brother to come back home. And then he let himself cry.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There’s a knock on the door. Langris quickly looks in the mirror. The shadows under his eyes he could do nothing about, neither his paleness. He quickly put stray strands of hair back into place and put a neutral look on his face. But he had barely gotten up when Mimosa Vermillion let herself into his office.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Miss Vermillion” he says. “Why did you barge into my ro-” he’s interrupted by Mimosa quickly rushing a spell out and green, flowery vines appeared, binding his limbs together.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, Vice Captain Langris, but I can’t have you running off without getting any background. Doctor Owen gave me permission.” She’s still on her feet, not nervous. If only she’d been like this for all missions she was assigned. “He got a new patient yesterday. Gauche and Noelle from the Black Bulls found him in the forest by the foot of the Northern Mountains, dressed in the clothes of the Dark Division of the Spade Kingdom’s military.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Langris furrows his brow, annoyance drawing on his face, his hair falling over an eye.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You barge into my room and </span>
  <em>
    <span>bind me up” </span>
  </em>
  <span>he hisses “because you thought I would go and attack a soldier from the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Spade Kingdom</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” He didn’t know a lot about the Spade Kingdom. His father’s library had a section of worn looking books, ornate but ages, which were written in the Spade Kingdom’s script for common tongue. Those books had been interesting to him with how mysterious they were, though there was something. . . </span>
  <em>
    <span>off</span>
  </em>
  <span>, about them. And those books went to his father’s office library because the one time he yelled at Langris was when he asked about them. He had managed to find the few books on them in the public libraries and hints of them in the private one.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Dark Division was the Spade equivalent of a division made entirely up of people with the skill and power of First Class Senior Magic Knights, as well as Captains. They were silent and ruthless and they had the power of an army. The information he had found it in was in a journal stolen from his father’s office, originally written in Spade’s script but slowly turning into Clover’s script. He had seen a page dedicated to drawings of their uniforms. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>So. . .</span>
  <em>
    <span>maybe </span>
  </em>
  <span>he would have stormed off to see and possibly release his pent up frustration on the Dark Mage. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Did you interrogate him?” Langirs asks. “Why was he in Clover? Is Spade planning to attack our northern region? Did h-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“He’s not going to tell us anything about Spade!” Mimosa cries. “And not because of loyalty, but because who </span>
  <em>
    <span>knows </span>
  </em>
  <span>what they did to him there! We’ll have to ask him at some point, but only when he’s better.” Langris feels the anger bubbling in him. He usually prides himself for his control of emotion, only letting through his snark and better-than-though demeanor. But everything’s taking their toll on him. He manages to spread his fingers under the fines and gather his magic. He hasn’t been spoiled by his grimoire. Sections of vine on either side of him are suddenly gone and the ones in front of him fall on the ground before disintegrating. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do you </span>
  <em>
    <span>mean </span>
  </em>
  <span>by th-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“IT’S FINRAL, DAMN IT! Owen told me to give you background information so you don’t just </span>
  <em>
    <span>barge in</span>
  </em>
  <span> but you’ve always been like this.” She’s panting by the end of that and Finral is still. His mouth is open just a little, eyes wide. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral” he slowly says. “As in. . .” he lets the silence hang. Mimosa swallows and nods. “Lead the way” he hears himself say and he’s happy that she’s walking quickly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Six months. In six months, probably less, his big brother. Sweet, kind, thoughtful Finral who didn’t deserve anything of this, kidnapped and taken to the Spade Kingdom. And he became a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Dark Mage</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It’s so hard to imagine. He has the mental image of the basic uniform and his brother, side by side, but never the same. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She leads him down halls, sunlight warm on his face. Warm like the hope bubbling in him. At some point, he’s ahead of Mimosa, racing down the hall, his cloak flying behind him. Most of the doors in the medical hall are cracked open, only one closed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His gaze narrows in on it. It feels like how it did back then, back when he was possessed. Reaching in the darkness for the light, for his brother’s hand, with his face framed by that green tipped hair, purple eyes shining.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The door slams open. His hand stays on the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There he is. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>There he is</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His brother is sitting on the bed. His head is tilted up, a tray of food on the corner of the bed, half eaten. His hair is longer than when he last saw it, free of any of that green. Purple eyes look at him, something dark in them, but then they light up. A smile crosses across Finral’s face, smaller than the usual, but so much more pure. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral” he breathes. It seems like a dream because of two things:</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>One: Finral is here. After six months .</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Two: He is wearing the individually unique clothes of the Dark Division, with a coat with a fur mantel, red leather, not even a hint of green on him except for his grimoire. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Langris” Finral says, standing up. His eyes flicker but then they meet Langris’s. He can feel Mimosa’s presence behind him and Owen is silent on the side but he doesn’t care. His knees feel weak but he nearly runs to his brother, wrapping his arms around him and putting his head on his shoulder, just holding him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It’s been more than a decade since he’s last hugged someone like this. Willingly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Brother” he whispers, tightening his grip on him, fingers burying in the fur on his back, entwining in the soft strands. Be hears Mimosa aw behind him.“Brother brother bro-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey hey,” Finral mutters, patting the back of Langris’s head and he leans into the touch. It’s not like his mom’s pats. No, Finral’s are so much better. So comforting. He pulls away and a hand slides down Langris’s arm until Finral’s right hand holds his left. Langris reaches for Finral’s left hand and he freezes when he sees it. Clenched in a fist, pale at the knuckles, covered in scars. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What the heck” Langris blurts. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t try” Owen says. “His hand just decided to stay like that. Fingers of steel, the boy has.”  Finral chuckles and now Langris is wondering why he was worrying about Finral so much. Besides being in the Spade Kingdom, he’s fine now! Beside the scars on his hand, he’s alright! His brother is here, whole and intact.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Actually, this was for you” Finral says, looking at Langris. His voice is hoarse and quiet, so quiet. Finral turns his left hand over and his fingers tremble when he unfurls them. He doesn’t make a sound. Sitting in his palm is something blue and silver. It’s simple. It’s perfect, kept intake in his hand, a dark indentation left in his hand. The fingers look bad, with healed scars on the sides, as if someone slid a knife through them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s been a while and I almost lost it a few times but. . .happy birthday.” Langris chokes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He already saw what he wanted to get you.But he never arrived and then we searched and never found him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Did you. . .” he swallows. “Finral, brother. . .did you keep this for six months, just to give it to me.” Finral smiles, nervous. There’s something off about the look on his face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, ah. . .yeah” he says. In one motion, Langris takes the necklace. He’s not one for jewelry but this one isn’t really feminine. And the jewel matches his eyes and the silver isn’t eye catching but elegant at the same time. He pulls at the clasp, quickly putting it on his neck. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“There. Thank you” Langris says. Finral’s smile grows brighter and Langris tutts. “You’re too thin. I see that that plate is unfinished.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But </span>
  <em>
    <span>Langris</span>
  </em>
  <span>-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I refuse. Now eat it. Knowing you, you probably ordered something sweet like cake and ate that first, some of the other things, and feigned being full.” Owen laughs from the side. Langris looks over his shoulder and he sees that Mimosa is gone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You don’t look too good yourself. I’ll eat only if you sleep.” Finral pats the bed next to him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I trust you’ll look after the patient?” Owen muses. He’s concerned about the two, yes. He’s seen Langris and how much this whole thing has affected him. And Finral, he’s hiding the pain. He’s only showing what they want to see, giving out the illusion of being okay. Langris would be good emotional comfort for Finral and Finral being there will let Langris sleep. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen leaves the room for his office, getting ready for the Black Bulls arrival in a few hours. Langris sits next to Finral and he watches his brother eat. There are red marks on the top of his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. Langris doesn’t ask because his eyes fall on a metal thing, a </span>
  <em>
    <span>mask</span>
  </em>
  <span>, on the table. And then he realizes that Finral’s food is nothing solid. Liquids and other things like that. He keeps the anger down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He shivers, wrapping his arms around him. Sure, his uniform is warm, but the medical hall is charmed to keep cool to keep out diseases and such. He lies down on the bed once he sees that Finral has finished all of his liquids, putting the tray with the containers on the ground. He looks over and watches as Finral adjusts his seat beside him. He looks tired. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you cold?” Finral asks. Langris subconsciously curls up a little more and nods.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finral looks like he’s concentrating. He takes off the coat. Langris watches him. It still feels a bit more surreal. He’s never seen his brother in this color scheme, black and red. The glaring dark sign of the Spade Kingdom on the coat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He thought that the tunic would be long sleeve, at least to the elbow. But it’s cut off even before his shoulder is covered, sleeveless. There are black metal gauntlets with intricate engravings covering his forearms, exposed upper arms crossed with scars. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wants to ask about them. His heart has stopped. He’s feeling. . .he doesn’t know. Scared? No, that’s not right. There’s nothing to be scared of. Concerned, perhaps. Queasy. His head is bowed, focused on smoothing out the coat. His hair hangs in front of his face, long. His hand, left and previously clenched but still trembling, touches the spade on the fur of the back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You should take those gauntlets off” Langris quietly says. “Metal gets cold easily.” Finral blinks at him and he undoes clasps on the gauntlets, putting them on the ground. Just like the skin on the rest of his body it’s pale, slight indents circling his arm where the ends were. There’s scars under the gauntlets, older, though. As if they were made six months ago, thin and light. Scratches. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You can also stop acting so shy. No need to act so pathetic, brother” Langris teases, trying to get a sense of normalcy. Finral hugs himself, clutching at his biceps. Finral’s head snaps to the side, eyes widening at Langris. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wh-what?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Those scars. You’re self-conscious of them.” He tugs on the back of his brother's tunic, trying not to slip on the leather. “Just forget about everything that’s happened and sleep.” Finral closes his eyes and he quickly turns onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. He spreads the coat over the two of them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When they were little, Langris would get nightmares from the history books he would read from. Gruesome descriptions of violence. Torture. The horrors of the world. And he would sneak into Finral’s bed, never hesitating. Because for how much he tries to hate his brother. . .he can’t. And he’s more of a comfort than his mother is. And Finral would always be the first to initiate the hug, holding Langris close. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not this time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There’s something strange about that look on his face, with the cloak spread across the two of them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral” Langris says, “Can I hug you?” Finral stiffens besides him. “Finral?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Uh, n-n-not yet” Finral stutters. He turns his head so that he’s looking at Langris. Langris tries to give him a warm smile, meeting his brother’s eyes, but those purple eyes shift quickly. “Just. . .give me a few moments. I don’t like people touching me.” Langris moves his head to look at the ceiling. After a few minutes, Finral tugs on him. Langris rolls over and Finral wraps an arm around him, coat adjusting above them. Langris rests his head on Finral’s shoulder, just like when he was little. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The scars feel rough under his cheek. “I should be the one comforting you” Langris says “Not the other way around.” Finral shakes his head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No. This is good.” Langris turns so that he’s on his side, putting an arm over Finral’s torso. The leather is soft, well worn. “The Spade Kingdom. . .they weren’t the ones who took me at first.” Langris tightens his grip on his brother and he does the same. And Finral is trembling. Langris knew something was up, that there was a reason why he was trying to be strong. He was just waiting for a safe spot to break. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral” he says “You don’t need to tell me right no-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I was taken right after I bought the necklace. I had told the vendor my name, and before I could open a portal, I was knocked out. And. . .stuff, h-h-happened.” He keeps his gaze on the ceiling.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral, you do-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I think it was only a month. Maybe two. It was always dark. No light. They did things and they’d always call me by my last name. And then, before I knew it, I was in the open. It was night. Snowing. It was always cold there. And my transport was destroyed and they were killed and there were these three people, the Dark Generals. I was going to be sold to some Spade noble, but instead they took me. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know, they don’t have spacial magic in Spade. Or fire magic. I think that’s why they took me in but they were actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>nice</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Langris. Those three never hurt me. They helped me and they taught me. It was rough, but compared to everyone else who saw me-” his voice breaks off. “I’m sorry, Langris.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No” Langris says hoarsely. “Never say sorry. Don’t. . .I. . .I’m not good at comforting. Perhaps it was the one thing you succeeded me in.” Finral hums in agreement and Langris gathers enough courage to look at his big brother. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There are tears tried on his cheeks. There was no indication of them. No crack in his voice, no sniffling. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why don’t you cry?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I learned not to.” Finral winces. “Ah, sorry about that!” He says and he sounds like himself, from before all of this, with that natural nervous tone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“N-no. It’s alright.” Langris curls closer to Finral’s body. “We’ll help you brother. Me, your friends, your team.” The tears continue streaming down Finral’s face but the hug that he returns shows all the emotions he couldn’t release through his tears. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I missed you brother.” Finral says.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Me too.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know what, Langris? I like this new you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Go to sleep brother.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Langris looks up and he’s surprised. And then he smiles, snuckling closer to his sleeping brother and adjusting the coat, moving so that he’s nearly half on top of his brother, reminiscent of those faded memories of when he was big enough to be held, Finral spinning him around while he’d giggle before holding him close to his chest, muttering things about his precious baby brother. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He falls asleep with a comforting weight wrapped around him and another one hanging from his neck.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“The </span>
  <em>
    <span>hell is this</span>
  </em>
  <span>!? Where did </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>come from, Mushroomhead?” Yami takes his cigarette out of his mouth, exhaling a steady cloud of smoke. Marx smiles, a strained, fond smile on his face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“For the last time, sir, it’s Ma-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“HEY! MUSHROOMHEAD!” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What are you doing, brat?” Yami snarls as Asta leaps at him to get into Marx’s field of view, grabbing him by the head and holding him up in the air. Noelle tosses her hair from over at the table, a heavy blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Charmy sets a cup of hot chocolate in front of her. She was still a bit chilled from her and Gauche’s nighttime mission. The two of them were still tired. Noelle was jittery but she restricted the energy from that to her finger, which she’s pretty sure hasn’t stopped tapping on a surface for about an hour now. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Captain Yami” Marx sighs “I got a message to relay to you from Yuno of the Golden Dawn, who in turn got it from Doctor Owen.” Gauche and Noelle immediately perk up. It was almost time for lunch and sure, Charmy’s sheep cooks were almost done whipping up a feast, but hunger could wait. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Noelle and Charmy get up at the same time, blanket falling onto the ground, and both of them rush outside and probably onto their brooms. Asta gapes at the open door.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What’s up with them!” He exclaims. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So” Yami taps his cigarette before putting it back in his mouth “what does the old man want?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“He would like to talk to your squad in his office, before noon.” Yami frowns. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m missing four of my members,” he says, thinking of Grey, Nero, Gordon and Luck, somewhere out there in the world.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” Marx says. “As many as possible.” Yami nods. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright. We’ll be there.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Woah, Captain Yami!” Asta exclaims, stars in his eyes. “You’re actually going to exit base?” Yami looks down at him and Asta takes a few steps back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Find Magna and wake Vanessa up” he orders. “We’ll have Zora stay back for Henry.” Asta nods and quickly runs off. “I wonder why Gauche and Noelle left already,” he wonders.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Six months ago, Noelle and Gauche really didn’t get along well. They barely even considered themselves acquaintances. Noelle thought that Gauche had too much of a sister complex. Gauche thought that Noelle was a stuck-up royalty who would never know how to live a real life. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But six months gives you a lot of time to change. Noelle learned that Gauche is just very protective. He lost his family, his home, his belongings as a kid and all he had left was his sister who he couldn’t even be there for. Gauche learned that for how much Noelle uses her status as royalty, she doesn’t really mean it. It’s a defense mechanism, used to protect a girl who only has her brother on her side from the rest of the cruel world. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They are teammates. They are Black Bulls. They are family. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gauche stayed up all night thinking. Running that memory through his head over and over again. A black cloak with the glaring symbol of the Spade Kingdom. Snow covered body. Long, tangled light brown hair. Glazed purple eyes fading into relief above a metal mask. A limp body, so light. A growing patch of blood. Hidden bruises. Closed eyes. Stone room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The two race in the direction of the Clover Castle, eyeing the tower that is Doc Owen’s area of practice. They land on the ground, their robes alone diverting the guards’ gaze from them. Then they speed up to a run, the memory of walking down from the room still clear in their minds.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Noelle? Gauche?” The two stop in their tracks. In front of them is Klaus. The few times they’ve seen them in the last six months he’s looked worse for wear. He had reminded Noelle of Vanessa, trying to act like herself while slowly breaking inside because of Finral being gone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Noelle doesn’t stop the hope from welling up inside of her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Klaus stands tall, looking like a burden was lifted from his. His eyes are brighter and his glasses are cleaned. He has a small smile on his face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So we were right” Gauche mutters because there was only one reason why Owen would of called for the whole team rather than only Noelle and Gauche, or most likely: none of them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hello Klaus” Noelle says, an anxious grin forming on her face. She feels euphoric. Her memories from last night evaporate, leaving her with a mental chant of </span>
  <em>
    <span>Finral Finral Finral Finral</span>
  </em>
  <span>. “We’re heading up to see a patient. We’re in a hurry. I’ll catch up with you later.” Klaus adjusts his glasses, a knowing look in his eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t let me keep you waiting, then” he says before making his way past them. Gauche and Noelle continue and even Gauche is grinning. They reach the door and they’re about to open it-</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I knew you two wouldn’t wait for your team or even give them an explanation” a familiar voice muses. Noelle yelps. She hadn’t even </span>
  <em>
    <span>seen </span>
  </em>
  <span>Owen!</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t scare me like that. I’m a royal!” She says, face red, and both Owen and Gauche let out a laugh. Defense mechanism indeed. Owen raises a finger to his lips. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I think Finral is awake, but his guest isn’t.”  Noelle’s energy multiplies and she may be able to go up against Asta now- not that she ever thinks about him!</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So can we see him or can we not?” Gauche snaps. Owen chuckles. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Just be quiet. He knows that his team will be coming. I think he got a few hours in. And make sure you don’t say his last name.” Noelle and Gauche don’t question him and </span>
  <em>
    <span>now </span>
  </em>
  <span>the nervousness crashes down on Noelle. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She wonders what happened to Finral in the past six months. Why was he dressed in a Spade uniform? What did that uniform mean? How did he get over the mountain? Why not mention his last name? Whose his guest? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>What happened to him now? What sort of trauma is he stuck with, what memories. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gauche opens the door for her, gently pushing her inside. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Last time she was here, Owen’s magic was at work, healing. The bed in the middle is still there and there are two people on the bed. Noelle feels her heart melt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>One of them is Finral, his eyes peacefully closed, laying on his back. His arm is around the second person, curled up and half laying on top of Finral, limbs splayed across him and head resting on his shoulder, hair messing. The black coat is spread over the two, acting like a blanket in the chilled room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral?” Noelle says, unable to keep it from coming out as a question. Finral’s eyes open and he lifts his head up, trying not to disturb the hair ball on his shoulder. Act normal. Act </span>
  <em>
    <span>completely normal</span>
  </em>
  <span>. “So who’s that?” The shock that was on Finral’s face from seeing them turns into confusion and then relief. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, ah. Langris.” He says. “He’s asleep.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So you’ve become a sibling com, just like Gauche?” Gauche sends her a look but there’s relief on his face as well. Don’t go down the awkward path of sappy reunions. Just do what you naturally do with Finral. Be normal while acknowledging what happened. Finral’s face twists but his eyes are lit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, I can never beat Gauche,” he says. He pats Langris’s head before gently moving his arm off his midsection, sitting up. Langris squirms a bit but he stays asleep. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Now </span>
  </em>
  <span>Noelle decides to rush over. Finral opens his arms for her and she sits on the edge of the bed, hugging him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And because she’s just a kid, which even </span>
  <em>
    <span>she </span>
  </em>
  <span>forgets at times, she starts crying. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Finral” she says. “I missed you. We all missed you. So happy you’re back.” Finral pats her on the back and then she gasps, pulling away and hovering a finger over his exposed shoulder. “Wh-what are these?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Scars.” Finral says, short and simple. He looks up at Gauche to see how he’d react but the man only has curiosity and relief on his face. “Don’t worry about me, Noelle” he says, putting a hand on his shoulder and the other taking her hand which hovered above his shoulder. A soft smile on his face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If you don’t want people paying attention to those” Gauche says “You might want to get your coat back. The rest of them are probably almost at Owen’s office now. We left when Mushroom called.” Finral blinks. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh. That’s a good idea.” He looks down at Langris, still curled around him, and he gently takes the coat off. He bends down first, grabbing two metal things off the ground and slipping his arms through them, latching them to cover his lower arms. Then he pulls the coat on, slipping his arms through the sleeves and adjusting the black cloth around him. He moves Langris’s leg off him and stands up, putting his hands in his coat pocket. There’s something different about the way he stands, Noelle observes. That nervous energy, quick movements, it’s gone. He holds himself carefully, not paying attention to himself but to the world around him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Let’s take a walk?” Finral offers, a wistful look on his face. “It feels so nice to be in the Clover Kingdom again.” Noelle looks at Gauche and Gauche just points behind him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Shouldn’t we wake the brat up?” Finral’s eyes widen. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh, right. Yes!” He carefully shakes Langris. The teen grumbles and moves on the bed. “Laaaaangris. Langris. Brother~” he says. “I’m going on a walk with Noelle and Gauche. Wanna come?” Langris gets up. He doesn’t act embarrassed about being asleep or having slept with his brother. He just sends a narrow eyed look at Gauche and Noelle before sighing and getting up, stretching. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why not.” He sighs, adjusting his hair so that it’s a little more orderly. Then he slips his hand into Finral’s. The elder looks at him, eyebrows momentarily raising before a content look crosses his face. Noelle coos and Langris sends her a glare, which she ignores. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Let’s go?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Let’s go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They’re walking back to the room, hopefully before the other Black Bulls and Owen realize that Finral is gone. Finral is quietly listening to Noelle, Gauche, and Langris argue about the best restaurants in the area. Finral’s always known that it’s one of Gauche’s secrets. He still retained some likes and wants from being a noble, and his guilty pleasure is using half of his paycheck at once at restaurants fit for high nobility.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For Finral, everything that he’s hearing seems kind of new. For now, he’s ignoring everything that happened in the past six months. He’s pretending that they never happened until he can no longer do that. He’s going to hold it in. He’ll let it come out. . .somehow. The emotional block he has in place will only last so long and he’s willing to bet that just like in those six months, it’ll fall at night. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“FIIIIINRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!” He hears Asta and Magna scream at ear splitting volumes before the sound of a door opening- well, probably breaking into a million pieces- comes. And then the songs of chaos. “Hey, doctor guy! Finral isn’t here!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh no no on” Noelle mutters and the four of them break into a run, Noelle reaching the top first and waving at the oblivious team from down the hall. “Hey! He’s with us! We just went on a quick walk!” The noise from the group goes silent when Finral finally emerges from the staircase, his hands in the pockets of the coat once again. He takes his right hand out and he hesitates before he waves his hand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“FINRAL!!!!!!” Asta exclaims, running full speed at Finral. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This is going to be fun.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
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